Innovative writing mentor program featured at conference

Cedarville University’sWriting Center Mentor Program was featured during the East Central Writing Center Association (ECWCA) conference held this spring at Southwestern Michigan College.

Julie Moore, associate professor of literature and director of the writing center; Isaac Mayeux, assistant professor of English and assistant writing center director; and Melissa Faulkner, chair of the English, literature and modern languages department, presented a session about Cedarville’s writing center mentor program at the conference.

Brandon Best, a senior English major and writing center mentor, also presented a course paper on the student success he witnessed as a program mentor.

During fall 2017, Moore, Mayeux and Faulkner launched the writing center mentor program to provide additional support for incoming students who did not meet English proficiency requirements. Students were placed in a class called Writing Studio at the same time they enrolled in Composition.

“This is an innovative approach to teaching at-risk students who come in with low English proficiency,” explained Moore.

Six below-proficient students are placed in each Writing Studio class to receive extra instruction. Students also benefit from one-on-one time with a writing center mentor, who facilitates the Writing Studio workshops.

The writing center mentors lead the workshops under the direction of Moore and Mayeux, who developed the Writing Studio curriculum. The mentors also received additional training and certification from the College Reading and Learning Association.

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 3,760 undergraduate, graduate and online students in more than 100 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings and leading student satisfaction ratings. For more information about the University, visit www.cedarville.edu.